Bacardi celebrates Back to the Bar festival

09 February, 2018

ByShay Waterworth

Yesterday (February 8) more than 5,000 Bacardi employees around the world finished work early to go for cocktails in more than 100 different bars.

The company was celebrating its first annual Back to the Bar day, which is timed to coincide with the company’s Founder’s Day festivities, this year commemorating the 156th anniversary of the largest privately held spirts company in the world.

Jacob Briars, global advocacy director at Bacardi, joined DI at a London Cocktail Club to discuss the significance of the date.

“Instead of having a long lunch to talk about ancient history we thought we’d go out to bars around the world and engage with bartenders, and celebrate our brands,” said Briars.

“We’re also trying to reconnect everybody in the company with the brand. Because it is such a big company it’s very easy for someone who works I finance or HR to limit themselves to that role, but our vision is for everyone in the Bacardi family to feel engaged with what we’re doing – and that’s engaging our brands with the bar industry.

“As a former bartender I know how important it is to engage with brands so that the industry can stay connected.”

Mahesh Madhavan, CEO of Bacardi, added: “Back to the Bar is our version of ‘walking the factory floor’ and puts our people in touch with what’s happening in our business in real life and real time, something you can’t truly understand behind a computer screen, sitting through a presentation, or dissecting a spreadsheet.”

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Comment

I know how wierd this might seem but I often think that the opening of a new distillery is like the launch of a new submarine. It is unveiled in all its pristine glory in a blaze of publicity and fanfare.